Seasonal Flu Shot

Visit What You Should Know for the 2016-2017 Influenza Season for flu and flu vaccine information specific to the 2016-2017 flu season.

What is the flu shot?

The flu shot is a vaccine given with a needle, usually in the arm. The seasonal flu shot protects against the three or four influenza viruses that research indicates will be most common during the upcoming season.

Is there more than one type of flu shot available?

Who should get vaccinated this season?

Who should not get a flu shot?

How effective is the flu shot?

The ability of a flu vaccine to protect a person depends on the age and health status of the person getting the vaccine, and the similarity or “match” between the viruses or virus in the vaccine and those in circulation. For more information, see Vaccine Effectiveness – How well does the Flu Vaccine Work.

What are the risks from getting a flu shot?

You cannot get the flu from a flu shot. The risk of a flu shot causing serious harm or death is extremely small. However, a vaccine, like any medicine, may rarely cause serious problems, such as severe allergic reactions. Almost all people who get influenza vaccine have no serious problems from it.

What are the side effects that could occur?

• Soreness, redness, or swelling where the shot was given
• Fever (low grade)
• Aches

The intradermal flu shot may cause other additional mild side effects including:

• Toughness and itching where the shot was given

If these problems occur, they begin soon after the shot and usually last one to two days.

Can severe problems occur?

Life-threatening allergic reactions are very rare. Signs of serious allergic reaction can include breathing problems, hoarseness or wheezing, hives, paleness, weakness, a fast heartbeat, or dizziness. If they do occur, it is within a few minutes to a few hours after the shot. These reactions can occur among persons who are allergic to something that is in the vaccine, such as egg protein or other ingredients. While severe reactions are uncommon, you should let your doctor, nurse, clinic, or pharmacist know if you have a history of allergy or severe reaction to flu vaccine or any part of flu vaccine.

There is a small possibility that influenza vaccine could be associated with Guillain-Barré syndrome, no more than 1 or 2 cases per million people vaccinated. This is much lower than the risk of severe complications from flu, which can be prevented by flu vaccine.

What should I do if I have had a serious reaction to seasonal influenza vaccine?

Call a doctor, or get to a doctor right away.

Tell your doctor what happened, the date and time it happened, and when you got the flu shot.

Ask your doctor, nurse, or health department to file a Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) form, or call VAERS at 1-800-822-7967.

Can the flu shot give me the flu?

No, a flu shot cannot give you the flu. Flu vaccines that are administered with a needle are currently made in two ways: the vaccine is made either with a) flu vaccine viruses that have been ‘inactivated’ and are therefore not infectious, or b) with no flu vaccine viruses at all (which is the case for recombinant influenza vaccine). In randomized, blinded studies, where some people got flu shots and others got saltwater shots, the only differences in symptoms was increased soreness in the arm and redness at the injection site among people who got the flu shot. There were no differences in terms of body aches, fever, cough, runny nose or sore throat.

More information about these studies is available at:

• Carolyn Bridges et al. (2000). Effectiveness and cost-benefit of influenza vaccination of healthy working adults: A randomized controlled trial .
• Kristin Nichol et al. (1995). The effectiveness of vaccination against influenza in healthy working adults. New England Journal of Medicine. 333(14): 889-893.

Why do some people not feel well after getting the flu shot?

The flu shot can cause mild side effects that are sometimes mistaken for flu. For example, people sometimes experience a sore arm where the shot was given. The needle stick may also cause some soreness at the injection site. Rarely, people who get the flu shot have fever, muscle pain, and feelings of discomfort or weakness. If experienced at all, these effects usually last 1-2 days after vaccination and are much less severe than actual flu illness.

What about people who get a seasonal flu vaccine and still get sick with flu symptoms?

There are several reasons why someone might get flu symptoms even after they have been vaccinated against the flu.

1. People may be exposed to an influenza virus shortly before getting vaccinated or during the two-week period that it takes the body to gain protection after getting vaccinated. This exposure may result in a person becoming ill with flu before the vaccine begins to protect them.
2. People may become ill from other (non-flu) viruses that circulate during the flu season, which can also cause flu-like symptoms (such as rhinovirus).
3. A person may be exposed to an influenza virus that is not included in the seasonal flu vaccine. There are many different influenza viruses that circulate every year. The flu shot protects against the 3 or 4 viruses (depending on whether the flu shot is a trivalent or quadrivalent vaccine) that research suggests will be most common.
4. Unfortunately, some people can get infected with an influenza vaccine virus despite getting vaccinated. Protection provided by influenza vaccination can vary widely, based in part on health and age factors of the person getting vaccinated. In general, the flu vaccine works best among young healthy adults and older children. Some older people and people with certain chronic illnesses may develop less immunity after vaccination. However, even among people who tend to respond less well to vaccination, the flu vaccine can still help prevent influenza. Vaccination is particularly important for people at high risk of serious flu-related complications and for close contacts of high-risk people. For more information about the effectiveness of the flu vaccine, see How Well Does the Seasonal Flu Vaccine Work?

Lastly, the flu shot can cause mild side effects that are sometimes mistaken for flu. See ‘Why do some people not feel well after getting the flu shot?’ for more information.

• Influenza Vaccine Information Statements (VIS)

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